School leaders, mental health professionals, and students from across the region gathered to discuss the rapidly changing online landscape and how schools, families, and communities can better support young people. We were proud to have Zoey representing Eastern and providing a student perspective as part of this important conversation.
One of my biggest takeaways from the summit was the importance of trying to understand what students are searching for online and why they are searching for it. In some cases, students may be looking online for something they feel they are not getting at school, at home, or in other parts of their lives—things such as belonging, acceptance, connection, or understanding.
Another important part of the discussion was recognizing that young people are going to make mistakes online. Our responsibility as adults is not only to help students understand the potential dangers of social media and the online world, but also to teach them how to manage the amount of time they spend online, make responsible decisions, and learn from mistakes when they happen.
One statistic shared at the summit was especially interesting: 48% of students surveyed believed spending too much time online was a problem, while only 14% believed they personally had a problem. Another powerful takeaway was that the number-one indicator of whether students were building positive relationships online was whether they had a trusted adult in their lives.
That reinforces something we talk about often at Eastern—the importance of relationships and belonging. It also makes me want to emphasize even more the value of extracurricular activities. We want all of our students involved in multiple activities when possible because we know those connections can support academics, attendance, behavior, relationships, and, perhaps most importantly, give students a place where they feel they belong.
Eastern offers a wide variety of extracurricular opportunities both during and after the school day. If your student is looking for a way to become more involved, please watch our website for opportunities or reach out to one of our school offices. We would be happy to help connect your student with an activity, club, team, or program that may be a good fit.
For families and educators looking for additional information about helping young people navigate the online world, the DQ Institute dqinstitute offers resources related to digital well-being, online safety, screen-time management, digital citizenship, cyberbullying, and healthy technology use.
Thank you to Zoey for representing Eastern and helping make sure the student voice was part of this important conversation.
Any students interested in participating in similar events should apply for Appalachian Youth-Led Prevention Council with this link: Appalachian Youth-Led Prevention Council
